Method and apparatus for sealing hood caps to bottles



Feb. 7, 1939. E. T. FERNGREN METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SEALING HOOD CAPS TO BOTTLES Filed June 22, 1935 ll Sheets-Sheet l FIGLIE INVENTOR G N a R Feb. 7,- 1939. E T. FERNGREN 2,145,975

I METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SEALING HOOD CAPS TO BOTTLES ll Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed June 22, 1935 iNvENTOR ENOCH T. FERNGREN FIGB.

Feb, 7, 1939.

E; T FERNGREN METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SEALING HOOD CAPS TO BOTTLES Filed June 22, 1935 11 Sheets-Sheet 3 I 6 L; I i ll 11 11 za I j 22 IUL rm INVENTOR F|e.3

ENOCH T. TERNGREN Feb. 7, 1939.

E. T. FERNGREN METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SEALING HOOD CAPS TO BOTTLES Filed June 22, 1955 11 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR ENOCH T'FE'RNGREN Feb. 7, 1939. E. T.'FERNGREN METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SEALING HOOD CAPS TO BOTTLES Filed June 22, 1935 ll Sheets-Sheet 6 FIG.14

FIG. 15

lNVENTOR ENOCH T FERNGRLN Feb. 7, 1939. E. 1 FERNGREN 2,145,975

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SEALING noon CAPS TO BOTTLES Filed June 22, 1935 ll Sheets-Sheet '7 INVENTOR ENOCH T. FERNGREN FIG. l6

E. T. FERNGREN' METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SEALING HOOD CAPS'TO BOTTLES Filed June 22, 1935 ll Sheets-Sheet 8 IFIGJS INV ENT OR I 'ENOC'H T. FERNG KEN FIG. 2?.

Feb. 7, 1939. E T FERNGREN 2,145,975

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SEALING HOOD CAPS TO BOTTLES Filed June 22, 1935 ll Sheets-Sheet 9 F 19 ENVENTOR ENOCH "1? FERNGREN Feb. 7, 1939. E, T, FERNGREN 2,145,975

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SE ALING'HOOD GAPS TO BOTTLES Filed June 22, 1935 ll Sheets-Sheet 10 Y //9 1/3, /06 [oz/'4 9 2 mi; 25 I w normally rigid, semi-rigid or soft and slightly Patented Feb. 7, 1939 PATENT OFFICE METHOD AND APPARATUS HOOD CAPS TO FOR SEALING BOTTLES Enoch T. Femgren, Toledo,. 0hio, assignor, by mesne assignments, to Plax Corporation, Hartford, Conm, a corporation of Delaware Application June 22, 1985, Serial No. 28,008

Claims. (01. 226-83) This invention relates to the art of sealing bottle caps to bottles for milk and wines and to other types of bottles. Such caps comprise hood caps and different kinds of seals of thermoplastic,

extensible body wall structure, and outside coverings for sealing other types of caps to the neck and mouth portions of bottles.

The invention particularly relates to a method of and an apparatus for sealing such caps and structures to the mouths and necks of bottles to form tamper-proof coverings and vacuum seals thereat.

The caps should preferably be of such character that the application of heat and pressure will cause the wall of each cap to become plastic and conformable to the shape of the bead, brim, or a lip edge at the neck and mouth of a bottle in a manner entirely to exclude all air between the contacting surfaces of the cap and the bottle.

The material employed in the cap body or wall should also preferably be capable of uniting or coalescing with itself at folds or overlapping points and also capable of being remolded or reshaped by heat and pressure in a way firmly to lock with, around and under the lip head of a bottle.

Cap structures having the properties of the kind indicated may be formed by pressing from sheet stock, or by coating forming tools externally or mold members internally with film-forming solutions, which features are subject matters of invention in several of my copending applications, Serial Nos. 586,184, 629,357, 654,374 and 737,797, filed Jan. 12, 1932, Aug. 18, 1932, Jan. 31, 1933, and July 31, 1934, respectively, and other copending applications which have now matured into Patents No. 2,090,528, granted Aug. 17, 1937, and Nos. 2,099,055 and 2,099,056, both granted Nov. 16, 1937.

Caps for use according to my present invention may be formed of any organic so-called "plastic film-forming material or compound, such as are derived from cellulose derivatives in combination with resins, plasticizers, fillers and solvents. The cap or sealing structures may also be formed of thin sheet materials or foils which may be had from cellulose acetate or nitro-cellulose compositions or from regenerated cellulose, gelatine, casein, or from natural or synthetic resins compounded and/or plasticized, and such other materials, as for instance, chlorinated rubber, resins derived from rubbers, glyptals, sulphonamide-formaldehyde, polystyrols, vinyls, or from paraffine, balata, fiber compounds or like compositions, ureaor phenol-formaldehyde resins and condensation products, modified by other materials and in compounds with other materials, all of which are more or less heat sensitive, so as to become temporarily soft, tacky, adhesive, and in some instances, partly fluid when heated under pressure, and thus capable of being applied and hermetically sealed to the upper ends of bottles by the process and means hereinafter disclosed in which heat and pressure are used simultaneously.

It is an object of the invention to seal any type of hood cap or closure, the material structure of which partakes of any of the-properties of the abovementioned materials so as to have vacuum adhesion with a neck and mouth of a bottle, whether such cap structures are rigid or slightly extensible before being acted on according to my process. It is further an object of the invention to provide such attachment of the cap structure to the exterior of the bottle neck or bead that the cap may be readily stripped away without leaving any deposit on the bottle neck.

It is also an object to seal the skirted portion of a hood cap or other sealing structure, so it will draw tight under the bead of the bottle by means of folds in the side wall or skirt of the cap, which folds are caused to become more or less closely united with one another or adjacent surfaces while the cap structure proper is set to the shape of the bottle mouth to form a rigid seal thereon, which if tampered with will easily disclose this fact and cannot be again sealed in its original form to the mouth of the bottle.

Another object is to seal caps of thermoplastic material to and under the bead of the mouth of a bottle, in a fashion partly to stretch and also partly to shrink the cap structure by mechanical action and by heat and pressure until the cap wall is smoothly remolded to the shape of the ex- 40 terior of the neck and mouth of the. bottle without any open folds in the skirted portion of the cap at the point where it is sealed under the bead, the accompanying mechanical drawing action under pressure and the subsequent heat and pressure being productive of a vacuum seal between the wall surfaces of the cap and the exterior face of the bottle.

It is further an object to incorporate labels, disc caps, or printed discs of any kind of material with the hood cap structure during the capping operation to obviate the necessity of a separate capping operation when requirements call for a disc cap or a printed label in addition to the sealing feature.

With reference to the capping of refrigerated. milk bottles in a dairy where atmospheric moisture condenses on the cool bottles, it is an object of the invention to dissipate the moisture either by absorbing it into the cap structure at the time of capping or by partial conversion of the moisture into a vapor; or if the cap structure be of such material make-up as to prohibit such practices, to employ the expedient of drying the exterior of the bead or neck of the bottle before the caps are placed thereon as shown and described in my copending application, Serial No. 737,797. In this application there is disclosed a mechanical capping apparatus for use with the same types of caps as are described herein. The present invention is a continuation in part of the matter disclosed in my application, Serial No. 737,797, and also of the matter relating to caps and the capping of bottles disclosed in my aforesaid applications Serial Nos. 499,771 and 586,184, the former having matured into Patent No. 2,099,055.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a front elevation of a device for capping milk bottles;

Fig. 2 is a vertical section substantially on the line 2--2 of Figs. 1 and 4;

Fig. 3 is a view in side elevation of the upper portion of the device shown in Fig. 1 with certain lower parts in vertical section on the line 3-3 of Figs. 1 and 4; I

Fig. 4 is a view in horizontal section taken along the line 4-4 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary view in vertical section similar to the upper portion of Fig. 2 showing the upper portion of a milk bottle and a cap during the capping operation as the seal is being formed;

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary view in elevation showing a half pint milk bottle with an adapter platform and a bottle guide and in sealing position;

Fig. 7 is a view in horizontal section taken on the line 1-1 of Figs. 3 and 5;

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary view in vertical sec= tion of a capping head showing the positions of the capping parts relative to a bottle and a can when the latter is entering the capping head;

Fig. 9 is a detail view principally in horizontal section on the line 9-9 of Figs. 2 and 3;

Fig. 10 is a fragmentary view in vertical section taken through the capping head, the bottle and the cap at the instant the scaling is completed;

Fig. 11 is a view in horizontal section on the line H-H of Figs. 2 and 3;

Fig. 12 is a fragmentary detail in vertical section on the line l2--i2 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 13 is a view in horizontal section taken on the line l3l3 of Figs. 2, 3 and 5;

Fig. 14 is a view in vertical section similar to Fig. 5 through the capping head, the bottle and the cap, showing the positions and relations of the parts prior to the final sealing operation;

Fig. 15 is a diagrammatic view principally in elevation illustrating a cycle of operation and showing the relationship of certain operating parts to the steps of the operation and the actuation of the means therefor;

Fig. 16 is a View in vertical section similar to Fig. 5, but showing a modified construction of capping or sealing head including a cooled central plunger portion and indicating the relationships of the parts before a bottle is elevated into contact with the operative parts of the capping head;

Fig. 17 is a view in vertical section similar to Fig. 16 indicating the positions of the parts when the bottle and the cap are in their extreme upper position prior to the completion of the sealing operation;

Fig. 18 is a view in vertical section similar to Figs. 16 and 17 and showing the relation of the parts as the cap is being sealed to the bottle;

Fig. 19 is a view in side elevation of a sealing device in combination with a disc inserting mechanism;

Fig. 20 is a view in horizontal section taken on the line 20-20 of Fig. 24;

Fig. 21 is a view in horizontal section on the line 2l-2l of Fig. 23;

Fig. 22 is a view in vertical section taken through the disc feeding and capping mechanism on the line 22--22 of Fig. 25 showing the relationship of the parts prior to the completed sealing action on the skirted portion of a cap; I

Fig. 23 is a view principally in vertical section similar to Fig. 22 showing the relationship of the parts when a cardboard disc is placed centrally in the mouth of the bottle and cap and the skirted portion of the cap is molded or sealed to the bottle;

Fig. 24 is a fragmentary view principally in vertical section and similar to Figs. 22 and 23 of the capping head in combination with mechanisms for sealing discs to the cap and into the top of a bottle, the view being taken on the line 24-24 of Fig. 19;

Fig. 25 is a plan view of the capping head and the disc feeding mechanism of Figs. 19 to 24; and

Figs. 26, 2'7 and 28 show different shaped caps which may be sealed to the neck of a bottle by the present method and apparatus shown in the preceding figures, Figs. 26 and 27 being views partly in elevation and partly in vertical section and Fig. 28 being a perspective view.

The apparatus shown in the different figures is largely mechanical in operation, but is partly bydraulic as liquid means are used for communicating pressure. In Fig. 1 there is shown a hollow base portion I to which is attached a hollow standard 2, at the upper end of which is attached the capping head housing 3. These three parts form the main supporting structure for the mechanisms and parts of the apparatus.

Article elevating means A forked arm 4, Figs. 2, 3 and 4, is mounted on shafts 6 and l, which are journaled in hub portions 5 in the walls of the base i. This arm is raised and lowered by means of a cam 8, which acts upon a spring suspended plunger 5 mounted in a hub ill and adjustable in respect thereto by means of a hollow adjusting screw H and nuts i2 and 3.

The cam 8 is mounted on a shaft it which is journaled in the housing wall as shown in Fig. 4. The outer end l5 of the shaft is connected to a crank handle l6 at a huh I! thereof, so that the apparatus may be manually operated by turning the crank it, which will rotate the shaft H.

The forward ends of the lever arm #3 are pivoted to blocks l9 by means of pins 20. The blocks is are slidably mounted in slotted portions l8 of a cupped cylindrical member 2|, which is securely attached to a vertical stem 22. The top 1 end of the stem 22 is connected to a bottom supporting and elevating platform 23, the stem 22 being vertically slidable in a hub portion 24 of the base i.

As the shaft it is turned by means of the crank Iii, the cam 8 will raise and lower the stem 22 tion of the period consumed for one complete revolution of cam 3. me uniform radius portion 25 of the cam operates to hold-the platform in elevated position while the cut-in face portions 26 and 21 of the cam operate quickly to lower and to raise the platform 23 in succession during each stant or intermittent driving speed or combinations of these as may be desired for any particular capping operation. This would dispense with manual labor except for placing the bottles on the platform 23. The ordinary conveyor systems in a dairy could also be arranged so as to deliver successive bottles to the platform 23 and also so as to remove the bottles from said platform automatically.

Thus, the mechanical features shown in the hand machine illustrated may readily be adapted for automatic operation to provide an entirely automatic device without departing from the invention as herein disclosed.

Hydraulic pump mechanism The shaft l4 has mounted thereon a disc 23, Figs. 3 and 4, which is adjustable relative to the shaft by means of screws 29 and 30, the object being to provide an eccentric relationship of the disc 28 relative to a squared portion 3| of the shaft l4.

The eccentric disc 23 is aligned with and r0- tatable inside a ring member 32, thereby -communicating a vertical reciprocatory movement to a diaphragm 33 by means of a pivot lug 34 of the ring 32, which is connected to the mounting 35 of the diaphragm by means of a pivot pin 36. The mounting 35 is secured to the diaphragm and to a hollow piston 31, which is slidable in the lower end of the housing 2, the leaking of any fluid from the housing 2 being prevented by gaskets 38, one of which is provided. on each side of the .diaphragm as indicated in Fig. 2.

Thus, when the shaft I4 is rotated, the eccen-' tric disc 28 will cause the ring 32 to move in a circular orbit and hence to impart to the associated diaphragm 33 a vertical reciprocation, causing vertical displacement of fluid 43 in a chamber 42.

Fluid heating means The housing 2 is provided with an electric heater 39, Figs. 2, 3 and 9, which is secured thereto by means of a bracket 40 andscrews 4|. The heater 39 functions to heat the fluid 43 contained in the hollow space 42 of the housing 2. This fluid may be any good heat conductingmedium, mercury being preferable because this material can be heated to the temperatures required for quick sealing operations without the formation of any vapor, so that proper pressure and also suctional control can be had on the column of fluid material or any portion thereof in the housing 3 by the movement of the diaphragm 33 as aforesaid. In other words no additional pressure will be developed by any gaseous exudation within the sealed-in portion or hollow chambers of the housings 2 and 3 which together form a sealed-in chamber having a defiectable diaphragm 33 at its bottom and a flexible rubber or rubberoid cushion 43 forming a wall portion of an internal chamber or space 41 in the housing 3.

The capping head The housing 3 supports a circular channel member 49, Figs. 2, 5, 7, 8, 10 and 14, to which the cushion 43 is secured. The upper structural central portion of the housing 3 supports a disc 44, which is arranged to be resiliently slidable by means of a stem 45 and a spring 43. The disc 44 forms a support for a hollow rubber cushion 50, which acts to seal the central portion of the cap inside the open mouth of the bottle at the time of capping and sealing.

A rubber cushion 5| is supported from the inner face of the upper portion of the housing 3. This rubber cushion serves to bear diagonally downwardly upon the shoulder portion of the cap and thus functions slightly to lift the central portion of the cap as against the elastic pressure of the cushion 53 and the spring 46. This in fact is a resetting or setting in of the cap along the shoulder curve of the bottle'mouth, which tends to create a vacuum condition in the spacef'between the inner lower face of the central portion of the cap and the top level of the liquid in the bottle.

Any degree of sub-atmospheric pressure is of importance in preserving and maintaining a liquid food such as milk in an unchanged condition, so that it will retain itssweetness and freshness for a longer period of time, thereby conferring a practical advantage for dairies and consumers alike in that instead of delivering milk every day, the dairies can deliver milk once or twice a t ek and the consumer can store the milk under n mal home conditions without danger of souri'.

The cushion 5| operates to bring about a very close adhesion between the inner face of the cap and the outer, upper, curved surface of the lip or bead which surrounds the 'mouth of the milk bottle, the stretching action as between the rubber cushion 5i and the cushion members and 48 serving to produce a squeezing out of all the air between the cap wall at the shoulder portion of the cap and the upper portion of the bead curve 52 of the bottle, which actions also tend to move the cap wall downwardly over the bead, thereby stretching the central portion thereof in a concentric fashion.

As the diaphragm 33 is raised, the column 0 fluid 43 in the chambers 42 and 4'! will move upwardly and also concentrically inwardly at the cushion wall 48, the movement being indicated by arrows.

Liquid circulation and capping operation Circulation of the liquid 43 is insured by means of right and left hand passages 53, Fig. 7, which are the ingoing passages, mainly located in the housing 3, and a central return passage 54, which is located partly in the housing 3 and partly in the hollow standard 2. As the diaphragm 33 is raised, the fluid material is moved bodily upwardly and passing through the upper portion of the chamber 42, enters the passages 53. Floating valves 55 are suspended in the passages 53 so as to open into the housing 3. Thus, when the liquid material encounters the valves 55, they automatically open toward the housing 3 and the capping head. From the passage 53, the liquid passes through openings 56 in the member 49 into an annular space 51, which is located between the circular channel member 49 and the elastic cushion 43, thereby inflating the wall of this cushion concentrically inwardly as shown in Figs. 5, l and 18. As the fluid column 48 is lifted by the action of'the diaphragm 83, the pressure is communicated through the fluid to the space 51 around the annular cushion 48, causing a complete. concentric expansion of the elastic cushion 48. Located in the central return passage 54 is a valve 58 permitting circulation in the direction of the arrows.

The action of inflating the cushion 48 occurs as the neck and mouth portions of the bottle are located within the capping head. Heat and pressure are thereby communicated to the side wall of the cap structure, uniformally at all points of the bead and entirely independently of any variations in the shape of the bead. This will confine the skirted side wall of the cap to the various diameters of the bead of the bottle, firmly setting the cap structure to the shape of the bottle once the cushion wall 48 is withdrawn, thereby allowing the colder temperature of the bottle to rigidify the walls of the cap.

.If the side walls of the material which forms the cap are shaped into folds or pleats, .the action of the cushion 48 will cause a resetting and reshaping to the extent of causing a coalescing ,or welding action between adjacent faces of the or slightly flared-out side walls and are of the promolded type, the action of the flexible wall M will cause a remolding of a shrinking-in nature, so that the skirted portion of the cap, or at least that section thereof which comes within .the embrace of the wall 48, will immediately assome the form of the bead without any notice- 'a le'overlapping puckers along the zone ofpressure-application.

'Ihe sealing of the cap to the bead of the-bottie or to. any portion below the bead; if this is required, -is'. a c.complished during the upward is moved downwardly, the valves'55 will tend to close and the valve 58 to open, allowing the slightly chilled liquid to return through a .passage 653, into the lower portionfofthe chamber 42, where it is progressively reheated by the electric heating unit 39.

The alternate pulsations of flow of the heated and cooled liquid body 43 normally forms a thermo-siphon system of circulation, which automatically carries the hot liquid into the: upper level and into the capping head where it is cooled by transmission of some of its heat to the relatively cold bottle and cap. As the fluid cools during this capping operation, its normal tendency to flow downwardly to the passages 68 is assisted by means of the pumping action of the diaphragm and the valves 55 and 58. As the liquid is thus forcibly returned, there is a rapid flow from the space 51, which permits the resilient restoration of the larger inside diameter of the elastic wall 48, causing it to spread open and move away from contact'with the cap which has been scaled to or about the head of the bottle. The action of the wall 48 is thus the same as when inflating an inner tube for an automobile tire casing. However, with the arrangement shown, the outer wall of the tube is in this instance a rigid body, while the inner wall is elastic and eicpansible, so that the inflating and deflating action becomes very pronounced ducting materials which are resistant to chemical action with materials in contact therewith and which have no affinity for the fluid material used for pressure and heat condition. In this connec. tion it should be observed that steel is not attacked by mercury, for which reason it is well to construct all the housing parts of this material. The best material for the diaphragm 33 is a line grade of spring steel.

Additional structural details and adjustments In order to make the apparatus serviceable for different sizes of bottles, such as pints and half pints, bracket stools GI and 62 are provided to make up for the difference in height, as is best shown in Figs 3 and 6. In order properly to centralize the mouth of any size milk bottle with relation to the capping head and the ring 48, there is provided stops 83, 84 and 85, Figs. 2, 3 and 6 respectively, which correspond to the diameters of the bottles respectively at their widest body portions.

These stops are secured to the housing 2 by means of a series of pins 68 which have recesses 67 in their upwardly facing side portions, by which the stops are received and held in position and are also readily attached or detached, as illustrated in Fig. 2.

For the replacement of the wall section 48, sufiicient fluid 43 may be withdrawn from the chamber 42 to lower the fluid level to a point below the capping head by removing a plug 68 at the upper end of the housing structure 2.

In order to renew or replace the wall portion 48, screws 89 are removed which allow a holding plate 10 to be removed from the housing 3. It is then quite easy to remove the circular channel member 49 and wall portion 48.

All the housing parts are normally protected from excessive loss of heat by exterior packings of mineral wool or asbestos in spaces H, 12, i3, 14 and 15. If it should become necessary or desirable to heat the central portion of the capping head, a cavity 16 may be likewise packed with heat retaining material. However, it is advantageous to promote radiation of heat from the top of the capping structure, in which case water may be circulated through the cavity 16 for the removal of surplus heat, so that the top portion of the cap may not be unduly softened and become too extensible.

Alternative form, Figs. 1a, 17, and 1s In order positively to insure against excessive heat transfer from the heated portion of the housing 3 to the cushions 58 and 5!, a construction such as is shown in Figs. 16, 17 and 18, is very efiective. In this construction there is employed a water-cooled plunger member formed as a hollow cylindrical chamber 71, which is freely slidable in a guide bore 18 of the housing 3a. This chamber 11 is provided with a flanged screw cover 19 at its top portion through which water is admitted and withdrawn from the interior of the chamber I1. A depending wall portion 88 shown integral with the cover 18 divides the chamber 11 so that the stream of water must pass close to the bottom surface 8! as it flows from an inlet pipe 82 and is withdrawn through an outlet pipe 88. The pipes 82 and 88 are connected with a water supply and a point of discharge respectively by means of flexible tubes 88 and 84.

The chamber 11 is free to slide vertically in the bore 18, As herein shown the vertical movement is caused by the contact established between the top of a bottle and the surface 8i of the chamber 11. This chamber may be mechanically balanced to reduce its weight and/or mechanically operated to reciprocate it independently of the outward or downward movement of the bottle. Assuming that the position of the chamber 11 is as shown in Fig. 16, it may be advantageous to raise the plunger chamber at a slower rate of speed than that of the upward movement of the bottle or at such a coordinated speed that if a fragile cap is employed, the plunger may have less of a dwell at the first instant of contact with the cap. Again, the chamber 11 may be held in an upper position and then caused to descend before, after or at the instant the shoulder 81 of the cap contacts the rubber cushion 5]. All these operations maybe accomplished by simple mechanical exp'edients for carrying out the desired method steps as set forth.

As shown in Fig. 16, a bottle 88 is in a position to be raised or lifted. As this occurs, the top portion of a cap 88 on the bottle contacts the wall portion 8| of the plunger 11, which reverses the top wall of the cap, forcing it downwardly in the bottle and expelling the air from the mouth of the bottle so that a very small air space will remain above the level of the contents therein. As the shoulder portion 81 contacts the cushion 5|, the central cap portion 89, Fig. 17 is drawn taut by the concentric diagonal drag in a downward direction against the ring ii at the shoulder 81 of the cap. During this stretching of the cap, the chamber I1 is slightly raised by the central portion 89 of the cap or by outside aid and will be located about as shown in Fig. 1'7, at which time the cap is ready to be acted on by the expanding wall cushion 48.

The relation of the cap and the bead of the bottle is well shown in Fig. '18 at the time the fluid pressure and heat is communicated to the wall 48, which action immediately molds the major portion of the wall or skirt 90 of the cap about the curvature of the bead 9| of the bottle, leaving a fringe at the lower end as a fiounce skirting extending downwardly from the point where the bead joins the neck of the bottle to provide a gripping margin for removing the cap from the bottle.

The cooling of the central top portion of the cap and the cool condition of the cushion 5| prohibits or reduces the extensibility of the material of the cap and may induce a harder or less pliant condition in the top and shoulder of the cap at the time of capping, so that any reshaping efl'ected at the top or shoulder of the cap in setting it into the mouth of the bottle or in drawing it diagonally downwardly at the shoulder 8! will all reduce the normalextensibility of the material in accordance with its reduced temperature.

The action of the heated cushion 48 on the skirt portion of the cap, as shown in Figs. 16, 17 and 18, will be to compress the major portion of the side wall or skirt of the cap to conformity with the curvature of the bead of the bottle, leaving a flounce I81, Fig. '27, below the compressed portion. All the actions of capping and sealing thus described may occupy consecutive fractions of a second of time if sufllcient heat is present. When the cap is sealed about the bead of the bottle, there is an immediate reversal of the diaphragm 88, thereby withdrawing the liquid 48 from the environment of the flexible cushion 48, causing this cushion quickly to withdraw from the bead of the bottle and to collapse outwardly so as to allow time for the bottle to be removedand to be replaced by another bottle.

The cycle of operations The cam 8 and the diaphragm 88 may be synchronized in their timed relations in several different ways to suit any required time allowance for removing and replacing the bottle, for the displacement of the fluid 48, for the pressing of a cap and for the release of a capped bottle from the capping head. As shown in Fig. 15 a desired cycle of operation is effected by the present shape of the cam 8 in conjunction with the eccentric action for moving the diaphragm 88. The crank I8 is in starting position, as shown in Fig. 1; the head or plunger 9 is resting in the pocket of the cam 8 where the face 26 joins the face 21; and the diaphragm 88 is at the extreme bottom of its movement. A represents that zone or portion of the cycle where the plunger 9 and the arms 4 are pivotally moved around the axis of the shafts 8 and 1, out of the pocket in the cam 8 to the uniform radius portion 25 thereof as indicated by the dotted position of the plunger 8, thereby moving the platform 23 to its extreme elevated position, as shown in Fig. 3. During itsupward movement, the platform causes the bottle to pass through the position shown in Fig. 8 where the rubber cushion 50 meets the point of the cap during the upward travel of the latter to the position shown in Fig. 14. As shown in that figure, the bottle cap is brought into contact with the slanting wall ofthe rubber ring 5i, which tends to draw the cap outwardly from the center of the bottle and around the bead, while the cushion 58 and the compression spring 46 hold the cap in the inverted position shown.

The extreme upper position of the bottle is reached at the end of approximately nine-tenths of the movement represented by the zone A, leaving the plunger 9 at the position shown by 9-0. The other one-tenth of the zone A movement carrying the plunger 9 to the 9--B position at the end of the travel or zone A, is accomplished by the pressing of the plunger 9 against the compression spring in the hollow screw ii. This allows a limited variation in the heights of bottles and maintains a fairly uniform pressure between the bottles and the rubber pad 5| during the movements represented by the zones 13, C, D and E.

During the portion or zone A of the movement, there is hardly any liquid displacement eifected by the diaphragm 88, but during the portion or zone B of the cycle, the central part of the diaphragm 83 is brought to a position parallel with its sides, causing some slight inflow of fluid adjacent to the wall 48. The zone C represents that portion of the cycle where the center of the diaphragm is brought to its upper position, providing a maximum displacement of the cushion 48 and compressing it against the bottle head and the cap while the heat from the liquid heating medium 43 penetrates through the cushion 48 and is absorbed by the bottle cap for softening, reshaping and remolding it around the head of the bottle, thus completing the sealing operation.

Portions or zones D and E of the cycle represent movements of the diaphragm in which the center thereof is drawn downwardly from its upper position to the point where the diaphragm is flat or slightly concave upwardly, thus drawing the heating fluid from the inside of the chamber 41 and away from the cushion or wall 48 and causing said wall to move outwardly and away from the seal previously completed.

The portion or zone F represents that portion of the cycle where the diaphragm 33 continues its downward movement, completely opening the cushion wall 48 to its normal open position where the sealed bottle is free to be moved downwardly without any interference therefrom, so that the bottle is now dropped to its starting position with the plunger 9 in the pocket of the cam 8.

Alternative form, Figs. 19 to 25 As shown in these figures, a capping head 3b is combined with a disc feeding device which has a main structure 92 with a bore 33, this structure being securely fastened to the head member 3!) by screws 94.

The main structure or disc feeding device 32 is also formed to provide a cylindrical magazine 95, which is provided with a slot or recess 38 at its lower end adjacent to the member ID, as shown in the several figures.

A shifting plate 31 is securely connected to the lower end of a shaft 08. At the top of this shaft there is secured a helical cam 33. The plate 91 serves to transfer disc caps one at a time from the magazine and is oscillated partly by the spiral cam 39 and partly by a helical twisting spring I24, which is connected to a stationary rib I23 at one end and to the plate 91 at the other end.

The shaft 98 is journaled in a hub I04 of the housing 92. The helical cam 33 is acted upon by a roller IOI mounted on the outer end of a forked bracket arm I02 on a pin I03, said arm having a hub I04 which is adjustably held to a vertically movable shaft II8 by the nuts I05 and I08.

As the shaft H8 is lowered, the roller IN on the arm I02 will bear against the helical surface of the cam 99, thereby causing a rotation of the shaft 98 and the plate 91 against the tension of the spring I24 to move the plate 31 to the position shown in Fig. 21.

The magazine holds a tube III'I containing a quantity of disc caps I08 which are fed one by one to a position directly over the mouth of a bottle by the plate 91 as the shaft 8 is elevated, releasing the pressure of the roller IN on the helical cam 93 and permitting the plate 91 to be swung into the position shown in Fig. 20

'by the tensional force of the helical spring I24.

Each such movement moves a disc I08 into position directly over the bottle 88, the peripheral edge of the disc being lightly held in the part 3b while in such position.

The mechanism directly over the bottle 88 is provided with a sleeve IIO which has an outer shoulder III and holds a rubber ring H2 at its lower end. This sleeve is slidable in a vertically movable guide sleeve H3 and also in the: bore 93 of the member. The sleeve IIO has a nut H4 at its top end. A compression spring I03 is located between the lower end of the sleeve H3 and the upper surface of the shoulder III, thus permitting the sleeve IIO to move upwardly against the pressure of the spring I03 when the bottle is raised to its highest position, thereby providing a substantially constant pressure against the disc and the cap during the sealing operation, as shown in Fig. 23.

The top of the guide sleeve in is providedwith horizontal portions II5, Fig. 21, for receiving the forked arms I02, thus requiring the sleeve II3 to be raised and lowered the same distance the vertical shaft H8 is moved,

There is also provided a piston II'I within the sleeve III, which piston is held stationary by means of a rod II8 connected to a stationary bracket plate I I8, which is securely fastened to the structure 82 by screws I20, Fig. 25.

The piston produces a vacuum within the sleeve II8 as this sleeve. and the outer sleeve II3 are 'lowered relative to the piston II'I, thereby supporting the cap I08 on the rubber ring II2 as the sleeve IIO forces the cap through the upper supporting structure of the member 3b toward the ascending bottle 88.

As the sleeve H0 is moved downwardly by the guide I I3, the vacuum produced within the sleeve is operative to hold the cap I08 as it passes out of the member 3b, following which the cap I08 and the rubber cushion II2 encounter the upper face of the bottle cap. At this instant the downward movement of the sleeve H0 is checked, so that the sleeve now moves upwardly in respect to the sleeve II3 against the tension ofthe spring I09. This action also reverses the top portion of the cap and forces it downwardly in the mouth of the bottle.

As shown in Fig. 19, the crank I8 is in its starting position with the vertical shaft H8 in its uppermost position thus holding the sleeves H0 and H3 in their highest positions relative to the capping head. A cap I08 has passed into the bottom recess in the bore 93 directly above the bottle 88 as shown in Fig. 24.

As the crank I6 is turned, a cam I25 on the shaft I4 raises an associated roller I28 to the highest point of the cam, thus drawing the vertical shaft Hi to its lowermost position by the operation of a crank lever I28 pivoted around a stub shaft I29. The crank I28 supports the roller I28 by means of a pin I21 and is connected to the shaft II8 by means of a forked end I30 of the crank I28. This forked end cooperates slidably with a block I3| which is rotatably mounted on a pin I32 securely fastened to the shaft II8. As the cam I25 is rotated, the forked end I30 operates to move the shaft II6 so that its lower end I33 will compress an aligned compression spring I34 toward its mounting I35 thus moving the sleeves H3 and H0 downwardly and thereby causing the latter to contact the bottle 88 at the level indicated by the line X, Fig. 22, while the bottle is simultaneously brought to this point during its upward movement, the cap being forced into the bottle shortly before the latter reaches its uppermost position. The bottle, continuing its upward movement, now engages the ring 5| as shown in Fig. 3 and carries the sleeve IIO to the point shown in Fig. 23 to retain a constant pressure on the top and shoulder portions of the cap while the side wall portion thereof is being sealed to the neck of the bottle.

After the sealing operation is completed, the vertical shaft H8 is again permitted to raise by operation of the cam I25 and the spring I34 75 before the bottle is lowered out of the sealing position or out of contact with the cushion 48, thereby permitting the sleeve ill! to be lifted from the top of the cap without resistance just prior to the lowering of the sealed bottle.

As the shaft H6 is being elevated, the sealed bottle is lowered to its starting position; the roller |0l on the forked arm NI! releases the helical cam 99, thus permitting the plate 91 to be moved by the spring I24 to a position to engage the next cap I08 and to move said cap in the slot until it reaches its seat below the sleeve H0. This takes place as the sleeve H0 is raised to its highest position, thus completing the cycle of operations, as shown in Figs. 21 and 24.

It is evident that the various mechanisms and features of heating and cooling and of pressure and vacuum may be interchanged; for instance, the cushion 50 may be water cooled or heated if so required. Likewise the cushion SI and the I sleeve portion I 'l 0 may be cooled by the circulation of water.

Many difierent kinds of cam actions may be provided and difl'erently functioning schemes may be employed for bringing the heated liquid 43 into the capping head and against the cushion 48. All such variations in the features will not be a departure from the present invention as the arrangements shown and the relationship of the mechanical parts will permit of all these changes and will also permit infinite numbers of variations in the timed relations and coordinations of the heating and cooling and the displacement action relative to the various mechanical interrelationships as they are shown in the accompanying drawings.

I claim:

1. The method of sealing thermo-plastic cap structures to the bead around the mouth of a bottle, which comprises cooling the central portion of the cap structure while stretching it downwardly around the bead, and while so doing molding the side wall of the cap structure by heat and pressure externally applied until said wall conforms to the outer curvature of the bead.

2. The method of sealing a hood cap of thermoplastic material to the bead formation at the mouth of a bottle, which comprises first, depressing the central portion of the cap into the mouth of the bottle, second, drawing and pressing the shoulder portion of thecap downwardly over the outer bead curve of the bottle while simultaneously tensioning and slightly raising said central portion relative to said shoulder portion, and third, heating and pressing the side walls of the cap to the form of the bead of the bottle.

' 3. The method of sealing a hood cap of thermoplastic material to the bead formation at the mouth of a bottle, which comprises first, depressing the central portion of the cap into the mouth of the bottle, second, drawing and pressing the shoulder portion of the cap downwardly over the outer bead curve of the bottle while simultaneously tensioning and slightly raising said central portion relative to said shoulder portion, third, heating and pressing the side walls of the cap to the form of the bead of the bottle, and fourth, setting the heated wall portion of the cap by the chilling influence of the-lower temperature of the bead of the bottle to which it is attached.

The method of sealing a hood cap to the bead formation at the mouth of a filled bottle, which comprises first, removing air from the central portion of the mouth of the bottle by depressing the cap therein, second, creating a vacuum condition in said central portion by drawing the shoulder formation of the cap downwardly over the bead, thereby raising the central portion of the cap relative to the upper fluid level of the material in the bottle, and third, looking the side wall of the cap under the bead of the bottle by heating, pressing and cooling.

5. The method of sealing a composition can having thermo-plastic properties to the head and neck of a bottle, which comprises displacing air from the mouth of a bottle by the movement of the central top portion of the cap thereinto, drawing the shoulder portion of the cap into airtight contact with the outer surface of the bead of a bottle and thereby effecting a stretching of the central top portion of the cap, forming the skirt portion of the cap about the outside of the bottle neck in a plurality of folds, and causing a coalescence between the layers of material of said folds by heat and pressure incident to the forming operation for the skirt portion of the cap.

6. The method of sealing thermo-plastic wall structures'as an exterior protection to the contents of a bottle which comprises producing a vacuum condition in the mouth of the bottle by the actions of drawing and stressing the struc tural body of the said wall, causing a vacuum condition between the said wall and the exterior of the bottle, remolding and shrinking the said wall by heat and pressure to the said exterior of the bottle during a predetermined instant of time, and following such action immediately cooling the said structure to a rigid condition.

7. The method of sealing a hood cap to the bead formation at the mouth of a filled bottle, which comprises displacing air from the central portion of the mouth of the bottle by depressing the cap therein, creating a vacuum condition in said central portion by drawing the shoulder portion of the cap downwardly over the bead of the bottle, thereby raising the central portion of the cap relative to the upper fluid level of the material in the bottle, and sealing the skirt portion of the cap aroundand under the bead of the bottle to form an air-tight seal at that point.

8. Apparatus for sealing hood caps to bottles, comprising means for supporting a bottle, a capping head, means for relatively moving the bottle and the capping head in a direction axial of the bottle, means for depressing the center portion of a hood cap to displace air thereunder from inside the bottle, means thereafter operative for exerting a radial outward stretching force on the hood cap to efiect an air-tight seating of the shoulder portion of the cap on the lip portion of the bottle and to impart a tension to the cap tending to cause the center portion thereofto move outwardly of the bottle so as to rarefy any air remaining within the bottle, and means for sealing the skirt portion of the cap about and under the bead of the bottle.

9. Apparatus for sealing hood caps to bottles, comprising means for supporting a bottle, a capping head, means for relatively moving the bottle and the capping head in a direction axial of the bottle, a vertically movable plunger member havinga downwardly-convex end portion adapted to depress the center top portion of the hood cap to displace air thereunder from inside the bottle, means thereafter operative for exerting a radial outward stretching force on the hood cap to effect an air-tight seating of the shoulder portion of the cap on the lip portion of the bottle and to impart a tension to the cap tending to cause the center top portion thereof to move outwardly of the bottle so as to rarefy any air remaining in the bottle, and means for sealing the skirt portion of the cap about and under the bead of the bottle.

10. Apparatus for sealing hood caps to bottles, comprising means for supporting a bottle, a capping head, means for relatively moving the bottle and the capping head in a direction axial of the bottle, a vertically movable plunger having a resilient, downwardly-convex, rubber-like cushion at its lower end for depressing the center top portion'of the cap at an area spaced from the sides thereof into the opening at the top of the bottle to displace air thereunder from inside the bottle, means thereafter operative for exerting a radial outward stretching force on the hood cap to effect an air-tight seating of the shoulder portion of the cap on the lip or bead of the bottle and to cause the center portion of the cap to move outwardly of the bottle to rarefy any air remaining withinthe bottle beneath the cap, and means for sealing the skirt portion of the cap around and under the head of the bottle.

11. Apparatus for sealing hood caps to bottles, comprising means for supporting a bottle, a capping head, means for relatively moving the bottle and the capping head in a direction axial of the bottle, a resilient, downwardly-convex plunger associated with said capping head and arranged for movement axially thereof for depressing the center portion of a hood cap to displace air thereunder from inside the bottle, means for controlling the movement of said plunger in respect to said capping head in response to relative movement of the bottle and the capping head including a compressing spring disposed between said plunger and said capping head, means for thereafter exerting a radial outward stretching force on the hood cap to effect an air-tight seating of the shoulder portion of the cap on the lip portion of the bottle, and means for thereafter efl'ecting an air-tight seal between the skirt portion of the cap and the outer neck portion of the bottle.

12. Apparatus for sealing hood caps of thermoplastic material to bottles, comprising means for supporting a bottle, a capping head, means for relatively moving the bottle and the capping head in a direction axial of the bottle, a plunger mounted in the capping head for movement axially of the bottle and having a resilient, rubber-like, downwardly-convex lower end for contact with the center portion of the top of the cap, means including a compression spring tending to urge said plunger toward the bottle as it approaches the capping head so that the relative movement together of the bottle and the capping head causes the plunger to depress the center portion of the top of the cap and to displace air from inside the bottle beneath the cap, an annular ring of rubber-like material associated with the capping head and having an inclined annular surface for contact with the shoulder portion of the cap, said ring being constructed and arranged-so that upon relative movement of the bottle and cap toward each other, the cap will be stretched radially outwardly to eifect an airtight sealing thereof upon the lip portion of the bottle, an annular flexible diaphragm associated with the capping head for shaping the skirt portion of the cap around the neck and bead portions of the bottle, and means for causing a heated fluid medium under pressure to inflate said diaphragm to seal the skirt portion of the cap against the bottle by heat and pressure.

13. Apparatus for sealing hood caps of thermoplastic material to bottles, comprising means for relatively moving the bottle and the capping head in a direction axial of the bottle, a downwardlyconvex central plunger arranged in said capping head for movement in a direction axial of the bottle, to depress the central top portion of the cap, means for passing a cooling fluid through the interior of said plunger to cool the central top portion of the cap in contact therewith, means for effecting a radial stretching force on the shoulder portion of the cap subsequent to the action of said plunger in depressing said central 15 supporting a bottle, a capping head, means for top portion to impart a tension to the cap tending I to cause the central portion thereof to move outwardly of the bottle so as to rarefy anyair remaining therein, and means associated with said capping head for sealing the skirt portion of the cap around the outside of the bottle by the combined action of heat and pressure. p

14. Apparatus for sealing hood caps to bottles, comprising means for supporting abottle, a capping head, means for relatively moving the bottle and the capping head in a direction axial of the bottle, an annular, flexible, rubber-like diaphragm associated with said capping head and arranged to contact the skirt portion of a hood cap to cause it to conform to the outside of the neck of a bottle, a fluid passage in said capping head in rear of and in contact with said diaphragm, means defining an orbital passage for liquid including said fluid passage around said diaphragm, heating means for the liquid'in'said orbital passage, said orbital passage and. said heating means being so constructed and arranged as to eifect a thermo-siphon circulation of the liquid around said orbital passage, and means for forcibly displacing said liquid to force said diaphragm inwardly so as to apply heat and pressure simultaneously to the skirt portion of a hood cap in capping position in said capping head. 15. Apparatus in accordance with claim 14 wherein the means for forcibly displacing the liquid to flex said diaphragm comprises a diaphragm pump and wherein there are means for actuating said diaphragm pump in synchronized time relation with the means imparting relative movement to the bottle and said capping head.

ENOCH T. FERNGREN. 

